The Post-Date Text Message: When Do You Send It?

During our parents' generation, you'd go on a date and cross your fingers that your crush called you the next day. But today it's grown a lot more complicated....

If a date goes well, it's becoming standard practice to send a follow-up text message: "I had a great time tonight," or "I can't stop thinking about you..." Most of my friends wait about a half hour and then send a little thank-you note. It's a nice way to cap off a date, don't you think? You can give an instant thumbs-up and feel like you ended on a sweet note. (Plus, it's easier to write bold I-like-you's than to (gulp) say them.)

Sometimes post-date texts can also help explain tricky situations. Once, at the end of a long evening out, my date needed to help his very drunk friend get home, so we basically waved goodbye as we went our separate ways. (Romantic!) As I rode in the cab home, wondering if he liked me or not, a text message popped up: "I hope awkward exits aren't a deal breaker," he had written. Whew.

Tell me, dear readers, do you like to send post-date text messages? If so, how soon afterwards? A few minutes? An hour? The next day? Or are you a traditionalist who likes to savor the memory of the date without any electronics? Let me know!